On my second day, I decided to go to Yanmingshan. The weather looked promising that morning, but it started to rain the moment I reached Qingtiangang Grassland tourist center.
Taiwan has a lot of beautiful national parks scattered all over the country and Yangmingshan is one of the largest and it's just less than an hour away from Taipei. Since I'm not so much of the city type traveler nor am I the food hunter type, so it's predictable isn't it that I would go to the most accessible hiking trail from the city.
I board the MRT heading towards the Jiantan station and from there you can pick which bus you want to ride based on where you want to stop at the National Park. I'd been looking at the Guide to Taipei website and also the Official Yangmingshan website before I arrive but was quite indecisive on which place to visit since there are too many choices.
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At first I wanted to go to Qintiangang and then from there to Xiaoyoukeng by bus and hike to Lengshuikeng. But the weather was so bad that I decided to head back to Taipei after I completed the Qingtiangang circuit.
I didn't know that I need to change bus in Lengshuikeng to go to Qingtiangang so I just stayed on the bus while everybody alighted hahaha luckily there was an Indonesian family who spoke excellent Mandarin. They've been working there for years. They explained to me that I need to change bus and show the ticket given by the first bus' driver to the new bus' driver,
It was really foggy when I arrived and as I walk the trail, the visibility was only around 2m. I can't see the people walking in front at all. I can only hear their voices!
Actually, if you google this place, it will give you a lot of very beautiful scenery images. But since it was all foggy, rained like cats and dogs plus strong wind, my experience was rather eerie and I was walking alone. Near the end of this trail, I met with a group of Taiwanese. I actually heard one of them singing as I walk but since the fog was too thick I couldn't see where they were.
The guy who was singing actually spoke good English. All of them were from Tao Yuan and were there in Taipei to spend their National Day holiday. As we walk towards the end of the trail together, this guy told me all of the other sites in Yangmingshan that I should try if I have enough time. I said, "I might come tomorrow if it's sunny." and yes I did!
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| Damaged by the wind |
The first thing that I did when I woke up the next morning was peek from behind the curtain to see whether if it was raining outside. It was sunny!!! I quickly jumped out of bed, head towards the shower, quickly don my hiking attire, grabbed some buns at 7E and off to the MRT station. When I arrived at Jiantan around 9am, there were already long lines at the bus stop. I was actually very surprised to see the crowd was mostly consist of elderly! I've seen elderly hike in South Korea and Japan, but not as many as in Taiwan! Terus azam aku untuk tidak kalah dengan usia semakin berkobar kobar....
I decided to do the trail that I didn't get to do the day before. I took the bus to Yangmingshan station and from there took another bus to Xiaoyoukeng. Since the crowd was too overwhelming that day, there were a lot of changes with the bus system. On normal days, you board the bus with the route that passes the station that you want to stop at. But that day, you have to find which bus that goes directly to the station you want. I was actually impressed that they took the initiative to efficiently manage the overwhelming crowd. I've never seen that done at home. I mean, to suddenly change the bus system on busy days....
I only strolled for a few minutes in Xiaoyoukeng since the area is not too big. I then started climbing the path to the peak of Mount Qixing.
The tourist center was busy attending to tourists when I arrived, so I just took this picture to decide which trail to take based on the distance and estimated duration. It was really convenient. There were clear sign post along the way so you will not get lost.
The hike to Lengshuikeng was long but easy. I think everybody can do it. It started with this grassy area, and then the arrow bamboo trail and then the rocky peaks.
This is actually the second peak. It was so windy up there that my scarf almost got blown off by the wind! I quickly tied both end to the back of my neck to keep it secure. Kalo tudung betul-betul terbang nda tau la macam mana mau turun...Free hair???
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| Taipei view from atop Mt Qixing |
It was such a satisfying hike I did that day. I really love it when all the sweats is paid off by great scenery. I was not that tired at the end of the trail but yes I was extremely hungry. Knowing that most restaurants are closed from 2.30 to 5.00 pm, I went straight to a renowned seafood Sushi in Taipei and I ate my heart out! hahaha
Jakun aku dengan ordering sistem yang tiada human interaction ni hahaha (^^)
Hurm, since I've only been to Taipei, I think I'm obliged to go back and explore the rest of this country...
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